Since its beginning years, clear and efficient communication constitutes an invaluable 'tool' within the institutional domain of aviation. The characteristics of radio communication between air traffic controllers and pilots have been thoroughly analyzed in several languages, most noticeably in English and French, but little information, if any, exists in the case of Spanish.

Research of this type of communication in Spanish-speaking countries turns out to be of the utmost importance if we take under consideration the 2003-2004 ICAO's dispositions regarding the international levels of English proficiency for speakers who are not English native speakers but still need to perform their professional duties within the international aviation environment.

Regardless of communicative procedures standardization in each language for the specific purposes of aviation, speakers of different cultures apply their respective procedures and react to them in very distinctive ways. Results of investigations about this particularities could be used to better implement ICAO's regulations and to improve aviation English programs in the different countries.

Drawing on several theoretical approaches to talk in interaction, such as interactional sociolinguistics, conversation analysis and discourse analysis, in this dissertation we set to demonstrate the institutional features that characterize current aviation communication in Spanish in Argentina.

We analyse a wide sample of pilot-controller interactions, recorded at different control towers of the province of Buenos Aires, which concentrates the great majority of air traffic in Argentina. This sample includes mainly communications civil aircraft, but we have recorded some military communications as well. As complementary data, we also considered a set of interviews we performed with the personnel of these facilities, as well as with local pilots (in this case both recreational and airline pilots).

Among other significant results, the qualitative and quantitative analysis demonstrates that syntactic features are the most prominent linguistic reflections of the institutional objectives, needs and personal identities, but some of them -such as ellipsis, juxtaposition and paratactic structures- can also be counter-productive in terms of linguistic security if not used properly by the speakers.

Therefore, the speakers' sensible exploitation of these linguistic resources becomes one of the most distinctive objectives to be achieved during their basic and recurrent training, both in their native language -Spanish- and when they undergo aviation English programs. In this particular situation, training must also take under consideration individual attitudes towards the use of this language, as well as pay considerable attention to the use and interpretation of ellipsis in a foreign language.